CAMDEN – Leonilda Rodriguez had a simple answer when asked if she'd ever considered leaving Camden, her home for nearly 30 years.

"It's getting better ... why would I leave?"

Her daughter, Kimberly Velasquez, did leave, though, concerned about the city's once-failing public schools and crime, which reached even into Cramer Hill, one of Camden's more stable neighborhoods.

Velasquez lived in the suburbs for five years, but said she felt something was lacking.

"We lost a sense of community," she said, and so she moved back to the place where "Mommy always stayed," bringing her own children to live next door to their grandmother.

Rodriguez benefited from a home improvement program by St. Joseph Carpenter Society. New windows and doors, repairs to her home's foundation and ceiling, and lead paint removal were all provided by the nonprofit.

A grant, announced Monday by officials from the city, Cooper's Ferry Partnership and New Jersey American Water, will help more Cramer Hill homeowners take advantage of the program, said Pilar Hogan Closkey, St. Joseph's executive director.

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A view of homes located on River Avenue in the Cramer Hill neighborhood of Camden on Monday, July 16, 2018. (Photo: Chris LaChall/Staff Photographer)

The $985,000 New Jersey American Water Neighborhood Revitalization Tax Credit grant is meant to help revitalize the neighborhood of neat row houses and single-family homes.

It also will enable Cooper's Ferry to continue its Cramer Hill NOW initiative, first conceived in 2009, to improve infrastructure, mitigate flooding and improve parks and open spaces in the area, said Kris Kolluri, CEO of the community development corporation.

Homeowners like Rodriguez receive $5,000 grants to make basic, but essential, repairs, enabling them to remain in their homes, said Hogan Closkey. Lead remediation, electrical work, weatherization and roof repairs are cost-prohibitive to many people, especially those who earn low wages or are living on fixed incomes.

"Something like this rewards people for staying in their neighborhood, and helps older people age in place," Hogan Closkey said.

"We want to make sure the residents who've been here forever stay here."

St. Joseph's Carpenter Society has largely focused on housing, tracking down owners of abandoned homes in the city, acquiring the buildings and rehabbing them for eventual sale to city residents who want to own a home. The grant will also allow that work to continue.

The grant will also go toward a third phase of flood remediation and other improvements in Von Nieda Park. The Camden SMART (Stormwater Management and Resource Training) Initiative will receive funding as well for improvements at three Cramer Hill sites.

The funding is part of $4.8 million that New Jersey American Water has invested in Camden, according to its president, Deborah Degillio.

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A view of business on River Avenue in the Cramer Hill neighborhood of Camden on Monday, July 16, 2018. (Photo: Chris LaChall/Staff Photographer)

Still, more work remains in Cramer Hill, said Guy Pierce and Andre Ortiz, who peppered Mayor Frank Moran after the news conference with questions about how the grant money would be spent.

Pierce, an 11-year resident of the neighborhood, complained that work at a nearby former landfill is also driving rats, possums and other rodents into the neighborhood.

Moran, his suit jacket slung over his shoulder in the oppressive heat and humidity, listened to the men, adding that he's "passionate about Cramer Hill," where he grew up, and his administration is working to bring relief to neighborhoods throughout the city.

Ortiz, who's lived in Cramer Hill for 40 years, said alleyways next to his home are often filled with trash, something he's complained about to no avail. Street lights lining Harrison Avenue and other roads nearby are lacking, making residents feel it's too dangerous to be outside after dark, he argued.

"Cramer Hill is full of working people and retired people," said Pierce. "And our taxes keep going up, but we're not seeing the improvements they promised.

"I want to know where the money goes."

There have been enough improvements, though, to lure Kimberly Velasquez back, including the Kroc Center and schools to which she feels confident sending her children.

"It used to be too dangerous for him," she said, motioning toward her teenage son. "But now there are more police around, there's the Kroc Center and a gate around the park here.